It’s still school holidays here in Australia so I’m not kissing my kids goodbye to school every morning quite yet, but when I do I cup their cheeks, look deeply into their anticipation-filled eyes, and send them off with this little benediction: Be brave, be kind, be curious, and always know that

Guest post by Chandler Jo Santiago It’s Friday, so we are dreaming of the beach while she gets a chemo infusion. Allora reminds me regularly that she does not have cancer any longer. “I have chemo, Mama, not cancer.” When I look at her journey from that perspective, my heart

Guest Post by Marissa Henley Has this ever happened to you? Your phone buzzes, and you look down to see a call from a friend who’s expecting biopsy results. The minute you hear her voice, you know: it’s cancer. As you process your shock, sadness, and fear, you wonder how

After my first miscarriage, I scoured the internet to find miscarriage stories. I needed to know my pain was valid, my grief was warranted, and that I wasn’t alone. I often say that I devoured stories like medication in those early days—somehow they helped heal me as I absorbed them

The fact that you’re here means you’ve probably googled for clues on how to help your friend after a heartbreaking miscarriage or other form of pregnancy loss such as stillbirth, ectopic pregnancy, etc. I’m sorry. There’s no other way to say it other than: this is hard. Thank you for putting

Strength and dignity—she is tender, she is fierce One woman every minute dies in childbirth*. I am not her. You’re not either. But every “her” has a name. She’s built with strength and dignity. She’s woven together by the Creative One—all beauty and resiliency, determination and vulnerability. She is tender;

(Originally published on May 10, 2014) To be entirely honest, I miss the “innocence” of Mother’s Day that I used to know. I’m all too aware that not all women fit neatly into the “Mother Box”, and that for some, Mother’s Day is incredibly hard – a time of mourning even.

When I saw with my own eyes a woman giving birth in the mud in Papua New Guinea it changed me. I knew the statistics—that one woman dies in childbirth every moment—but I didn’t know their names. Knowing her name, Bokoro, altered everything for me. Related: Read Bokoro’s story (photos taken

She was at my door trying to sell me one of those dinner box services. Believe me, I would sign up if we could afford such things. Brilliant concept. With a baby on my hip and a polite “no thank you” on my lips, she turned the conversation to

Welcome. I'm so glad you're here. My name is Adriel and I’m all about telling stories of truth, discovery, and redemption. My husband and I lead an inner city missions community in Sydney, Australia and I'm the founder and lead advocate of the Love A Mama Collective (empowering girls and women in the developing world). I'm also the author of Grace Like Scarlett: Grieving with Hope after Miscarriage and Loss. I absolutely love helping people connect their passion and purpose as they discover the goodness of God, and I hope my words here will always inspire you to see the beauty around you and within you, even when life feels a little broken.